Darkness Returns
by thatACDCchick
Summary: After joining the Thieves Guild, Karianna, also known as the Dragonborn, finds herself part of a plot that could save the Guild's reputation or destroy it once and for all.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Hey, you back there, wake up, we've arrived in Riften," the carriage driver, Bjorlam, said.

A moment later, the carriage came to a jerking halt and nearly threw the Dragonborn to the ground. Grumbling slightly, she threw the ragged, fur blanket off and folded it up to fit into her bag. Once she was ready to depart the carriage, she thanked the driver and tossed him the rest of his promised gold before hopping down. With one last look back at the carriage, she headed down the road and towards the doors into Riften.

"Hold it," a stern voice suddenly commanded.

The Dragonborn stopped in her tracks and looked at the guard who had given her the command.

"Yes?" she asked arching her brow from under her helmet.

"There's a visitor's tax for all newcomers to Riften," the guard said.

The Dragonborn let out an incredulous laugh but the guard didn't seem to think there was anything to be laughing about. He drew his sword and pointed it in her direction with narrowed eyes. Sensing that this guard was not to be fooled with, the Dragonborn removed her helmet and stared down the guard. As soon as she did this, she noticed that the guard seemed to waver in his stare. Suddenly, an idea sparked in her mind.

"Seems to me that this is a shakedown," the Dragonborn said in a clear voice.

A bead of sweat rolled down the guard's neck. "Quiet down! Do you want to alert the whole city?" The guard said in a hushed tone. "Fine… I'll let you through… this time."

The Dragonborn chuckled to herself and bowed her head to the other guard standing at the gate to Riften. She then passed through the gate without any further trouble but just when she thought she was home free, she found herself stopped once more a little way into the city. This time by a much more intimidating man than the wimpy looking guard outside the gate.

"I don't know you, you in Riften lookin' for trouble?" the man asked.

"Just passing through, friend," she said holding up a hand in peace. "The name's Karianna."

"Hmph, name's Maul and I'm warning you now, _Karianna,_ don't go causing trouble in this town. You don't want to get on the bad side of the Thieves' Guild and you _especially _don't want to get on the bad side of Maven Black-Briar."

"Duly noted," she said with a curt nod before walking away and praying to Talos that she never ran into that man on a bad day.

Inside the inn by the name of the Bee and the Barb, Karianna sat took a seat and ordered a strong tankard of mead.

"Here you go, miss. Black-Briar Mead; best stuff in the Rift," the Argonian innkeeper, Keevara, said as she placed the tankard before the Dragonborn.

"Thanks," Karianna muttered and handed over the gold for the mead. "Hey… do you know anything about the Thieves' Guild or a person by the name of Maven Black-Briar?"

Keevara pulled a soiled rag from her belt and began polishing a bent tankard. "Well, Maven Black-Briar is perhaps the most influential person in all of Riften; even more so than the Jarl herself. See, her family's owned the Black-Briar Meadery for centuries and even before that, they've been in leagues with the Thieves' Guild and even, rumor has it, the Dark Brotherhood. As for the Thieves' Guild, I don't recommend you go associating yourself with them, even if you could find them beneath the city in the Ratway; they aren't exactly the company you want to keep in this city. But that's just my opinion." The innkeeper paused to spit into the tankard and continued rubbing the cloth along the inside. Karianna, suddenly without an appetite, set aside her mead after only a sip or two of its contents.

The Dragonborn thanks Keevara for her information and left the Bee and the Barb for the market in the center of the city. There, Karianna stood and watched the various transactions that took place while she decided what her next move would be. She should really visit the Jarl and see if there was any gold to be made in bounties or tasks around the hold. But before she could make a decision, a tall, Nordic man with red hair came to lean on the wall beside her.

"Hey, there, lassie, never seen your pretty face before," he said in an accented voice.

"Just arrived this morning to pass through," she explained.

"Ah! A traveler! Well, that means you've got goods to trade here in the market, possibly? Gold to be made? Well, what if I let you in on a little… _job_? Some easy gold to help you along in whatever bargains you're going to be making in the shops?" the man said in a low tone for only Karianna to hear.

The Dragonborn stopped and stared at the stranger before her. Was this some sort of trick or just a chance happening that fell in her favor? She had to admit that she could use the gold. Traveling around Skyrim hunting down the newly resurrected dragons wasn't cheap; especially after that carriage-ride all the way from Whiterun to Riften. Karianna seemed to stall a moment too long for the Nordic man for he held up his hands in defeat and backed away.

"Maybe this kind of job just isn't your taste, lassie. I'll be on my way," he said with a smirk.

"Wait… what kind of job did you have in mind?" she asked.

The man's smirk turned into a smile and he explained that all Karianna had to do was pick the lock on a strongbox behind the Argonian jeweler's stall and steal the ring inside while he was distracted. Then, she would have to slip the ring into the pocket of the Dunmer merchant.

"That's it?" She asked and the man nodded. "Well, might I ask, how do you expect me to distract all these guards and people here?"

"Leave that to me, lassie," the man said.

"Karianna. My name's Karianna," she said quickly.

"And I am Brynjolf," he replied and shook her hand. "Now hurry up and get into position. And be quick, lassie, I don't know how long I'll be able to hold the crowd's attention."

Karianna stood a little ways away from the Argonian's market stall and waited until he was looking away before nodding at Brynjolf. As Brynjolf shouted for the crowd to gather around, Karianna slid behind the stall and ducked out of sight once she was sure no one was looking in her direction. Amid the shouts of Brynjolf and the talk of the crowd, she picked the locks on the stall's door and to the strongbox inside. There, she was able to take the silver ring inside and quickly close the box and door to avoid suspicion. Finally, Karianna made her way over to the Dunmer merchant in the crowd where she was able to slip the ring into his pocket. As soon as she did so, Brynjolf abruptly ended his act and the crowd dispersed.

Karianna let out a relieved breath and asked Brynjolf what came next when he walked over to join her. "Watch the show, lass, and see." He pointed over to the Argonian who was beginning to shout for guards.

Together the thief and Dragonborn watched as the guards hauled the Dunmer away after searching him to find the ring tucked away in his pockets. Karianna smiled and felt the elation of watching a successful job come to fruition. Only now did she realize that her heart had been pounding the entire time Brynjolf was distracting the crowd and her armor suddenly felt heavy on her shoulders as the adrenaline left her.

"Nice job, lass. I think you have a real knack for this work. Now, then… down in Riften's Ratway is a tavern by the name of the Ragged Flagon. Getting to it isn't easy, but seeing as you handled yourself well enough out there today, I have a feeling you're more than capable enough to get through to it. Meet me down there for a drink and we'll get you started on some _real _work," Brynjolf explained.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Karianna drew her Elven Warhammer and approached the two bandits crouching by a small fire in the dark and dank tunnels. Despite the heavy armor she wore, Karianna was able to get the first attack off before they knew what was happening. With sharp cracks, the Dragonborn effectively dispatched of the two men. From there she was able to descend down a set of slippery steps and into the rest of what she now realized was a complete maze. The more and more she turned corners to find dead ends, twists, turns and vagrants who attacked her upon sight, the angrier and more frustrated Karianna grew. By the time she found the door to the Ragged Flagon, she was ready to hit Brynjolf over the head with her Warhammer for sending her through that labyrinth.

"Heeeey, lass, you made it!" Brynjolf called from a small wooden table.

"Don't you '_lass_' me," Karianna said through gritted teeth. She tightened her grip on her Warhammer until her knuckles shone white on the grip.

"What's wrong?" he asked knitting his brows.

"_You _sending me through that _maze _without so much as a warning as to how _lost _I was going to get," she seethed.

Brynjolf paused for a moment before bursting out in laughter. "Sit down, sit down, lass. Have a drink on me and I'll explain some things about my little… organization. I'll explain why you're here." He gestured to the empty seat across from him at the table.

Karianna stood there for a moment and weighed her options. Part of her wanted to simply smash Brynjolf on the head and storm off back through the Ratway to Riften. But the thought of trying to trek back through that labyrinth held her back. The other part of her was tempted by the free drink. From a bottle this time instead of a dirty tankard. In the end, she ordered a bottle of Black-Briar Mead and a little bit of food to eat as she listened to Brynjolf talk.

"Now, you see, lass, before I introduce you to the rest of the Guild, I have a bit of business for you to take care of for me. Hear me out." He held up his hands at the sudden glare she had given him. "Three people owe debts to the Guild and are refusing to pay up and I think you've got a certain spark to you that'll help me collect on those debts. You'll be paid of course, but only if you can get the debts without causing any trouble."

Karianna swallowed a mouthful of mead and nodded thoughtfully. "So who am I collecting these debts from?" she asked before taking a bite of charred Skeever tail which turned out to be a bit too charred so she washed it down with another swig of mead.

"Keevara, the Argonian innkeeper at the Bee and the Barb, I believe you've met her, already." He chuckled at the quizzical look she gave him. "I have informants all over this city. There isn't anything the Thieves Guild doesn't know about, lassie. The next person is the merchant, Bersi Honey-Hand, at the Pawned Prawn. It's right behind the Bee and the Barb next door to the Black-Briar Meadery. Finally, Haelga at Haelga's Bunkhouse, it's right on your left as you head towards the North Gate out of Riften."

"Okay…." Karianna wiped her hands off and looked at Brynjolf. "How do you expect me to _collect_ on the debts? More stealing?"

"No, no, no. None of that, lass. It wouldn't send the message to these and all of the other merchants to not mess with the Thieves Guild. Intimidate them. Fistfight them, if you must. But do _not _kill them. It's awfully hard to collect on a debt if the person is dead and we are not assassins, lass. We don't kill here in the Thieves Guild. Once you have the money, meet me back down here."

"Okay, then. What's an easy way out of here?" she asked and lifted the bottle to drain the rest of her mead.

"Right back through the Ratway where you came from." He laughed and clapped her on the back as Karianna choked and sputtered on her mead. "Don't worry, lass, you made it through once, I'm sure you can do it, again. And who knows? Maybe by the time you're finished collecting on these debts, you'll have memorized the path." With a wink in her direction, Brynjolf strode off through a door which he locked behind him.

Cursing his name, Karianna grabbed up her Warhammer and stormed back out of the Ragged Flagon ready to flatten the first Skeever than crossed her path.

Karianna was still seething as she walked up the rickety stairs to the main street and towards the Bee and the Barb. She had taken a dozen wrong turns and was ganged up on countless times by bandits and vagrants and various sewer life. Before stepping inside the inn, she visited the marketplace to make a few barters and ease up the load in her pack which in turn caused her coin purse to grow heavier. It was good timing, too, for she was nearly out of healing potions after all the fights she had gotten in within those few hours. Now, in a slightly better mood, Karianna walked into the inn where she immediately spotted Keevara behind the counter. Keevara nodded in the Dragonborn's direction when she spotted her and Karianna took note that the inn was almost empty, plenty of space for brawling if that's what things came to.

"Afternoon, Karianna, care for a bit of mead?" Keevara asked and reached under the counter for a tankard.

"Uhh… no thanks… I'm actually here on business," Karianna said quickly to avoid the dirty tankards.

"What business-?" Understanding dawned on the Argonian woman's face, followed by anger and what looked like disappointment. "You went and got tangled up in the Guild, didn't you? Well you can tell that buffoon that I'm not paying his people a single coin!"

"Look, I'm not in a very good mood after being down in that hellhole Ratway. Also, it was never a request to begin with."

"Hmph, look around you, I'm barely keeping this rat hole together, thanks to the war."

Karianna, who was tired of hearing the woman talk, heaved a sigh. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

"Give it your best shot!"

The Argonian leapt over the counter and landed the first blow on Karianna. The Dragonborn quickly got over her surprise and returned the favor to Keevara's scaly muzzle. Keevara's lover Talen-Jei shouted for the two women to stop but did nothing to pull them apart, not without anyone else in the inn to help him hold them back from each other. They circled around the room throwing punched left and right all the while knocking over chairs and tables and spilling drinks onto the floor. It was the first time Karianna had felt good since that morning when she helped Brynjolf in the marketplace. But just the thought of that man made her angry all over again and gave her that extra fire to bring Keevara to the ground where she begged for mercy and handed over the gold she owed to the Guild.

Despite a cut lip and a bruise beginning to well up above her left eye, Karianna felt better as she walked out of the inn and onto the next debt collection. She made her way over to where Brynjolf said the Pawned Pawn was and stepped inside. It was a cozy little shop and a balding man stood behind the counter counting gold. Even though he certainly looked weaker than the Argonian, Karianna didn't think she had it in her for another brawl, especially in a shop this small where she could be easily knocked into things. Instead, she picked up a Steel Mace hanging from a weapons rack along a wall beside an expensive looking urn.

"Ah, I see you're eyeing that Mace. I don't usually deal in weaponry, myself, but I'd be happy to sell you that Mace and you could go right over to the Scorched Hammer to sharpen it up," Bersi Honey-Hand said from behind the counter.

"Yes, it's a very fine Mace… mind if I test it out?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" he asked right as Karianna brought the Mace down onto the expensive urn beside her. "Wait! Wait! I know! You're from the Thieves Guild! Here, I was just counting out the septims for Brynjolf! Take them! Just please, don't destroy my shop!"

Karianna smiled and took the money. "Smart man."

_'Two down, one to go,' _Karianna thought to herself as she walked in the direction of Haelga's Bunkhouse.

Inside the bunkhouse, Haelga had apparently already heard about Karianna's "reign of terror" in Riften for she took one look at the woman and began begging.

"It's you! Please, don't hurt me!"

"So I take it you know why I'm here," Karianna said with amusement.

"Yes, please, everyone knows about what you're doing here in the town. I already have the money here, just don't do anything," Haelga said quickly and handed over a coin purse of gold with shaking hands.

Karianna smiled cheerily and thanked the woman before departing. Her good mood stayed with her even through the Ratway where she was able to instantly find the bridge leading across to the small room containing the stairway down to the door to the Ragged Flagon. There, she found Brynjolf sitting at the same exact table as before, but this time, he was wearing a set of armor from the Thieves Guild and a he now wore his weapon in the open on his hip. Karianna sat down in the chair across from him and tossed the three coin purses of gold onto the table before him.

"So, the job's done and you've even brought the gold." He sorted through the gold and counted out Karianna's share. "Best of all, you did it clean. I like that. Dumping bodies and bribing guards to keep quiet is expensive, so well done. And here, I owe you a little something in return." Brynjolf handed her a share of the gold as well as three different potions for her collection in the pack she carried.

"So, what's next, then?" Karianna asked after she had stored her earnings.

"Judging by the way you handled yourself out there, I say you've more than proved yourself. We need people like you in our outfit." He looked over at her hoping that she would agree.

"I'm in." Despite her anger towards him earlier, the pay was good and the jobs seemed easy enough.

Brynjolf beamed at her. "That's the spirit! I think you'll do more than just fit in, here, lass. Now then, about your next assignment for the Guild…."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Karianna crouched by the shore of Goldenglow Estate dressed in armor from the Thieves Guild. A woman who went by the name of Tonilia acted as the Thieves Guild personal "fence," meaning she'd buy ant stolen goods and would supply Karianna with armor upgrades as time passed. The armor was a lot thinner and lighter than her own Steel Plated armor which was now safely hidden in a log along with the rest of her gear save a few potions and a Dwarven Dagger Tonilia had sold her. Still, despite the enchantments on the armor to help her sneak around the estate, she didn't like the way the chill crept through. She also didn't like the way the mercenaries who were patrolling the estate under the light of the full moon.

She knew she couldn't exactly be mad at Brynjolf for getting her tangled up in this seeing as the assignment was given to her by the leader, a man named Mercer Frey. She couldn't even be mad at him for getting her initiated into the Guild, as much as she wanted to be. There was just something about the way he smirked at her and always called her "lass" that set her on edge for some reason.

Karianna shook her head to stop herself from dwelling on it. _'C'mon, you're the Dragonborn,' _she told herself silently. _'You can do this. Just focus on the job at hand.'_

Once she was sure she knew the mercenaries' patrolling patterns, Karianna moved in closer to the wall behind the bee hives. She had been ordered to destroy three of the hives and had come up with a little scheme to light them on fire without being noticed. As soon as the coast was clear, she threaded a series of fuses through the fence from three of the hives where she had built a little bit of kindling. From behind the safety of the fence, she lit the fuse and waited patiently for the smoke to rise and signal success.

Her heart leapt at the sight of the first column of smoke but the second and third was nowhere to be found. Karianna quickly scaled the wall to see what was the matter to find that one of the bee hives had indeed caught fire, but the other two had failed. Thinking quickly, she grabbed a torch from atop the fence and tried to reach the second bee hive. Finally, after her arm felt as though it would pop, the hive caught on fire and she was able to simply toss the torch at the third which quickly caught on fire. She was able to duck out of sight at last at the sound of alarm from the mercenaries.

While the mercenaries were distracted, Karianna slipped around to the back door and put the enchantments in her gloves to good use as she picked the lock. The inside of Goldenglow Estate was dark save for moonlight spilling in through the windows and light from a fireplace in the dining room. The lock to the basement was a little tricky, but manageable despite the chaos rolling around outside. She could hear water being splashed hurriedly over the bee hives in an attempt to salvage them as she crept silently down the steps. Three men were guarding the halls to the safe but Karianna was able to effectively slip by them using distractions from outside and invisibility potions sold to her by the local alchemist.

Just as she thought she was home free to the contents of the safe, she discovered that there was one last surprise to be had. A fourth guard sitting across the room from the safe. This one, however, was asleep in his chair with his feet propped up on a table. Above her, Karianna could hear the mercenaries guarding the Wood Elf who owned Goldenglow, Aringoth. She realized that her time was running out and that she had little choice left. As quietly as possible, the Dragonborn snuck over to the safe and began working on the lock. This lock, however, was seemingly tougher than the backdoor and basement door locks combined. Though that could have just been her nerves causing her to break lockpick after lockpick on the safe. Finally, after having drunk three potions said to increase lockpicking prowess, a potion for luck and a steady hand, Karianna was able to finally open the safe.

Unfortunately, the hinges on the safe door hadn't been tended to in ages and so they creaked louder than an old man's bones as she opened the safe. Karianna cringed and stopped to listen but everything around her was silent as the grave. With a smile, she made to grab the loot inside the safe before she realized that things shouldn't have been this silent even with the mercenaries outside having doused the fire. She turned slowly to see the hulking form of the guard standing over her with his Greatsword drawn and aimed for her neck.

Quick as a flash, Karianna grabbed the loot consisting of a bag of gold and a single envelope sealed with a dab of red wax and stuffed it all in her armor as she rolled out of the way of the mercenary's blow. She came up crouching with her back against the wall and her foot over a sewer grate. The mercenary sensed her distress and smiled through yellowed teeth.

"Shouldn't 'ave come 'ere, pretty little thief," he snarled. "Now… hand over the goods so's I don' get your blood all over them. The master wouldn't like that, now would 'e?"

Karianna shifted her weight onto the foot standing on the grate and felt the grate move. _It was loose! _But how would she move it in time to escape with her limbs intact?

"Your _master _probably wouldn't like hearing that you were asleep on the job, as well," she retorted. To her satisfaction, the mercenary's face turned red in embarrassment.

"I-I wasn't sleeping! I was only resting my eyes!" he shouted.

Karianna laughed indignantly and prayed that no one heard the man's shout. "A great buffoon like you? I imagine all you can do is eat and sleep. Eat and sleep. I bet you can't even swing that sword," she taunted.

With a roar of anger, the mercenary charged forward and Karianna took this time to make her move. She dodged the attack and leapt up to guide the man's blow onto the already loose sewer grate and was rewarded with it giving away entirely to a hole large enough for her to slip through. When the mercenary moved to attack again, she brought one of the empty potion bottles down on his head to knock him out cold before shoving him away and slipping inside to make her escape. A few yards down the tunnel, however, she heard the mercenary's voice once more.

"'Ope you enjoy _this_, pretty little thief." A second later a lit lantern dropped down from the hole and crashed upon the pink igniting liquid that was all over the floors and walls of the sewer tunnel.

"Shit." Was all the Dragonborn could manage before she broke out into an all-out sprint for the exit: a hole with cool moonlight flooding through the rotted, wooden boards covering it. She successfully sprang from the hole and onto the shore at the very edge of Goldenglow Estate, but not before a tongue of flame ate through the armor above her left glove, leaving behind a burn she only thought occurred on charred Skeever tail. She but back a scream of pain as she rolled away from the hole and the great ball of fire that emerged where she had been mere moments before.

"Lass!" a hushed voice cried out suddenly from beside her.

This time, Karianna _did _cry out, but only for a split second before one of Brynjolf's hands descended upon her mouth to muffle the cry.

"What in the name of Talos are you _doing _here?" she hissed.

"Keeping an eye out in case you needed help getting out of here." He stopped and looked at the bur on her arm with concern. "And luckily I did, lass."

"I don't need your help," she protested and tried to shove him away but he was far too large for her and she was far too weak at the moment.

He pulled a small, blue potion bottle from his pocket and a strip of cloth from under his armor. After stripping the glove from her shaving hand and rolling the tattered remains of her light armor away from the burn, he uncorked the bottle and poured some of the contents onto the wound. At first, the pain intensified and she felt as though her arm were on fire again, but then, the pain subsided and a soothing sensation was left behind in its wake. She found herself sighing in relief as he poured the rest of the bottle's contents onto the strip of cloth and tied that cloth around her arm to encompass the burned area.

"There, now, lassie. That should be better by tomorrow afternoon," Brynjolf whispered with a satisfied smile at his handiwork. "C'mon, let's get out of here before they start searching the shores."

"My gear-," Karianna began to protest.

"Already packed away on my horse on hiding amongst those trees. Let's go!"

Together, they silently waded through the cold water and onto the other side where Karianna slipped out of her Thieves Guild armor and into her own Steel Plated armor. Afterwards, they rode back into town on the back of Brynjolf's horse. The guards didn't even look their way as they strode inside the city's gates for the guards were too preoccupied with the events over at Goldenglow Estate.

"A thief broke in they're saying! Made off with the contents of the owner's safe!" Karianna heard a guard announce loudly to the crowd.

Feeling the weight of her loot inside her chestpiece, Karianna smile in silent triumph.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Back at the Thieves Guild, Karianna and Brynjolf parted ways. Brynjolf went to send his report to Mercer Frey and Maven Black-Briar while Karianna left to clean up and replace the burned armor. After dealing with the sour fence merchant, Tonilia, who was none too happy to hear that Karianna had gotten the brand new armor destroyed on her very first mission. After handing over a few hundred gold for the replacement, she headed over to the sleeping quarters and removed her Steel Plate armor and locked her gear away in a chest before laying down for some shut eye. But it seemed that no sooner had she fallen asleep than she felt a hand on her shoulder and a harsh voice in her ear telling her to wake up.

"Wake up, you," the voice said.

Karianna moaned and turned over to look at the person who disturbed her sleep. It turned out to be Vex, one of the only other women in the Guild.

"What's wrong?" Karianna asked groggily.

"Mercer Frey is asking for you. Says it's urgent."

"Tell him I'll be there in a minute," she replied as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Well, make it quick, I'm not your messenger," Vex snapped.

Biting her tongue, Karianna shook the sleep from her limbs and retrieved her gear from the chest. Out in the cistern stood Mercer Frey at his desk. Behind him was a set of shelves adorned with various pieces of unique loot from all over Skyrim including a statue of a queen bee made of solid gold, a decanter with golden filigree winding up the sides, a model ship adorned with precious gems, a puzzle cube that seemed to be Dwarven in design and origin, the bust of a man Karianna recognized as the infamous Gray Fox, and even a large map labeled "East Empire Trading Company Trading Routes." Below the map was a bust that seemed to be reserved for a crown of some sorts and on either side of the bust were two slots that looked like empty eye sockets.

Sensing her presence, Mercer Frey looked up and followed Karianna's gaze to the eye sockets. "I'm saving that spot for the Eyes of the Falmer. Ever since my master, the former Guildmaster, told me about them I have always wanted to go after them. And there they would sit to watch over the rest of my collection," he told her with a certain sense of pride coloring his voice. "If only old Gallus were still alive to join me on my quest for the Eyes. But Karliah saw to it that he'd never even see the light of day."

"Who's Karliah?" Karianna asked.

Mercer gave her a look that said 'another time.' "I wanted to congratulate you on a successful job last night. Not even Vex, one of our best thieves, could infiltrate Goldenglow Estate; the mercenaries were on her in an instant and nearly killed her." Now Karianna understood why Vex wasn't too fond of her. Karianna had succeeded where Vex had failed. "Now, then, onto the next order of business. Maven Black-Briar wants to speak with you personally about your next job. Meet her at the Bee and Barb in one hour. Some advice when dealing with Maven. Be on your best behavior around her. Be polite and do not speak unless spoken to. She and her family have been patrons to the Guild for centuries. Plus, she's none too happy to learn that the document you recovered from Aringoth's safe was the Bill of Sale for Goldenglow."

Traveling through the secret entrance which lead out into the graveyard behind the Temple of Mara, Karianna made her way to the inn. There, Keevara gave her a death glare from behind the counter but the Dragonborn simply nodded and smiled as she headed up the stairs to the room where she was supposed to meet Maven Black-Briar in. She sat at a small table in the corner of the room and pulled out a small meal of bread and cheese along with a bottle of mead to pass the time. Sure enough, an hour after she had arrived, a woman wearing a dark cloak arrived and sat in the seat opposite of Karianna.

"Hmph. So you're the one Mercer sent to help me deal with my… _'problem.' _You don't look like much, but you must be something special to be able to get in and out of Goldenglow Estate with those mercenaries crawling all over the place," Maven said. She lowered her hood to reveal her face which was pinched in a regal way for a Nord and her dark hair fell down her back from where it was pinned back. "I need you to sabotage Honningbrew Meadery outside of Whiterun. The owner's assistant, Mallus Maccius, is willing to help and has come up with a nice little plot. Meet him at the Bannered Mare in Whiterun for the rest of the details."

"Yes, ma'am," Karianna said politely.

"Hmph," Maven huffed haughtily. "Meet me back here once you've sorted everything out. Don't worry about time, I'll know once you've completed the job."

Resisting the urge to ask how she would know, Karianna left the inn and made her way to the stable where she rented a carriage for the journey to Whiterun. There, she hobbled her way into the city and into the Bannered Mare. Luckily, this innkeeper didn't hate her so when she asked where she could find a man named Mallus, the keeper pointed her to a man drinking from a tankard in a dark corner.

"Are you Mallus Maccius?" she asked the man.

"Yes… are… are you from the Thieves Guild?" the man asked in return. When Karianna nodded, Mallus turned pale and his eyes widened. "We shouldn't talk here, follow me upstairs."

Once they were away from the prying eyes and ears of the Bannered Mare's patrons, Mallus looked at Karianna.

"The owner of Honningbrew Meadery is cruel and sour man by the name of Sabjorn. He's hosting a taste testing ceremony for the commander of the guards here in Whiterun. I want you to sabotage the mead Sabjorn had brewed specifically for the ceremony," he explained.

"And how do you expect me to do that?" she asked arching a brow.

"It's no secret that Sabjorn has a Skeever problem. It's why he doesn't have as many customers as the Black-Briars, well… that and his mead isn't as good of quality as Black-Briar Mead. Anyways, he's been looking for someone to take care of the problem. He's even concocted a special poison for the task. I told him I had some affairs elsewhere to attend to, otherwise he'd have _me _do it." He gave Karianna a sly smile. "This is where _you _come in. Walk in, offer to take care of his problem and once you've killed the Skeevers, use some of the poison on the vat of mead for the ceremony."

"How am I supposed to get to the vat? Surely it's locked away or something-." She began before Mallus interrupted.

"The Meadery and Brewing House are both connected through the basement tunnels. He's had the storage tunnels expanded so many times, it's why there's such a big Skeever infestation. You should go, now, the ceremony is this evening."

Sabjorn turned out to be just as sour as Mallus described him to be. After he reluctantly handed over the poison and key to the basement, he shooed her away so that he could finish his preparations for the ceremony. Slaying the Skeevers was easy enough to accomplish for the Dragonborn, the only problem was a man who appeared to have been living beside the Skeever nest. According to the journal Karianna found, the man had escaped from Whiterun's prison and was trying to raise an army to smite his enemies using the Skeevers and his formidable magic and alchemy skills.

"Good! You've returned!" Sabjorn exclaimed after Karianna entered through the front door and the Meadery once she had made a quick stop through the brewery to add the poison. "You're going to have to wait until after the ceremony before I can pay you. Now, go stand over there and wait."

Karianna made a show to sigh and roll her eyes before walking away so that the commander and owner could talk. Soon, Sabjorn lead Commander Caius through a door that lead into the brewery. Mallus Maccius entered soon after and together, he and Karianna listened at the door. They heard Sabjorn tell Caius about the backstory to this new mead of his before Caius told Sabjorn to get on with it. Then they heard Caius choking and commanding for Sabjorn to be arrested by the guards accompanying them. The Dragonborn and assistant leaped back from the door as the guards dragged Sabjorn through the door and into the main part of the Meadery.

"You!" Sabjorn bellowed when he spotted Mallus and Karianna. "You're behind this! You're in leagues with Maven Black-Briar! I'll have you both hanged for this!"

"Quiet, you!" the guard leading him ordered. "Trying to poison the commander of the guards and then pin the crime on a Thane of Whiterun… despicable."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"The owner of Honningbrew Meadery has been arrested for attempting to poison the commander of the guards," Maven Black-Briar said when Karianna returned to the Bee and the Barb the net evening. "Good job."

"I found this in Sabjorn's office, by the way," Karianna replied handing over the note.

"_Sabjorn, _

_Within the enclosed crate, you'll find the final payment. As we discussed, Honningbrew Meadery should now begin brewing mead at full production. In regards to your concerns about interference from Maven Black-Briar, I can assure you that I'll do everything in my power to keep her assets and her cronies at bay. This is the beginning of a long and successful future for both of us,_" Maven read out loud. "So… it seems that whoever was behind the selling of Goldenglow Estate was also trying to buy Honningbrew Meadery. If only they would sign their letters instead of using this odd little symbol."

"Is there anything we can do _to _find out who they are?" Karianna asked.

"Actually, Mercer Frey is working on that. Take this note you found to him, it might just help him."

Karianna left without another word for the Thieves Guild headquarters. There, she found Mercer Frey at his usual post behind the desk.

"Ah, there you are, Karianna. Good job on the Honningbrew job," he said when she approached him. "Here's your cut of the spoils." He handed her a large coin purse before turning back to the documents he was studying.

"Maven Black-Briar suggesting that I showed you this note I found in Sabjorn's office."

"I see, so that settles it, then. I've determined that the person behind Goldenglow's sale and the _almost _selling of Honningbrew has a contact here in the Guild. An old informant by the name of Gulum-Ei. Find him in Solitude and squeeze him for information," Mercer explained. Just then, Brynjolf came down the ladder from the Thieves Guild's secret entrance. "Ah! Good timing Brynjolf! Tell Karianna more about Gulum-Ei, for me. I have some business to take care of."

Karianna looked over to Brynjolf briefly before tearing her eyes away. Why did she feel so embarrassed? She couldn't tell, nor would she admit to anyone that she still had the strip of cloth he had used to mend the burn on her arm. All she knew was that something felt different when she looked at him.

"So, Mercer is sending you off to question Gulum-Ei, then…," Brynjolf stated when he reached her. there was something in her voice she couldn't quite identify. Was is sadness? "Well… I'm sure he's already told you that Gulum is an informant for the Thieves Guild living in the city of Solitude. It's a pretty far ride from here, as you know, so I want you to be careful."

Karianna felt taken aback at his concern but she cleared her throat and ignored the burning in her face. "Um… where am I supposed to find Gulum-Ei in solitude?"

"He works for the East Empire Trading Company, but you won't be able to get to him while he's working. Go instead to the Winking Skeever; he can usually be found there on his breaks or days off. Fair warning: Do _not _kill him. He's a very valuable asset to us even if he is a traitor to the Guild. We need him. Simply talk to him, persuade him to give up the name of our adversary even if you have to pay him off."

"Right, then… I'll just… I'll just go get my gear together and book a carriage out of town, then," she replied feeling a little bit awkward.

"Good luck and, once again, be careful," Brynjolf said before she walked away.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot divulge the name of my informant, miss," the Argonian said arrogantly as he sipped a glass of Firebrand Wine.

Karianna seethed and glared at Gulum-Ei from across the table. She had been trying to get the info from him for nearly an hour but no amount of gold or persuading seemed to be working. Not even after she stole a whole case of the very Firebrand Wine for him from the Blue Palace would he talk. Finally she relented and decided to give up, even though she realized that she couldn't return to Riften without any information.

"Before you leave, though," Gulum-Ei said suddenly when she stood, "The woman you're looking for has a grudge against Mercer Frey himself."

"What do you mean?"

"Sorry but, I can't say," he replied and took a sip of wine.

The Dragonborn clenched her fists and stomped out of the Winking Skeever to come up with another plan. A few hours later, Gulum-Ei came staggering out of the tavern with the half empty case of Firebrand Wine under his arm and singing a tune of sorts under his breath. Now dawning her Thieves Guild armor for stealth, Karianna followed him out of the city and down to the docks where he entered a door which apparently lead to the East Empire Trading Company. After some quick lockpicking and a quick dodge into the shadows, Karianna found Gulum-Ei talking to one of the thugs guarding the Company's warehouse. The guards seemed to be problem for they were all over the place. They all carried torches in the darkness of the warehouse and were seemingly able to keep their eyes on every corner of the warehouse… except for maybe the topmost shelves. If she was able to climb the shelves and keep to the shadows on the very top amongst the goods there, she just might be able to stay hidden from the guards and keep an eye on Gulum-Ei at the same time.

Towards the end of the warehouse, however, Karianna ran into a problem. From her perch atop the shelves, she watched Gulum descend some stairs that lead down closer to the water level before going back up another set of stairs and behind the shelves she was on top of. From there, he seemingly disappeared through the wall. She furrowed her brow and thought for a second. Obviously he went somewhere, but she wouldn't be able to find out _where _or _how _from her position. She'd have to drop down and try to avoid the guards as she investigated the wall. Once the last guard passed by with his torch held high, Karianna climbed down silently from the top shelf to the area behind the shelf.

Here she was to see why it seemed as if Gulum-Ei had disappeared into thin air. Hidden in the shadows was a door which lead into a cavern. Judging from where she had entered the warehouse, she guessed that she was somewhere under Solitude towards the edge of the city. She was surprised to find the cavern to be full of bandits who were all carrying cargo to and fro or sitting around fires eating and drinking. Luckily, there was a small but deep underground river that seemed to run through the cavern. Karianna found that she was able to use this to slip past the bandits and still track Gulum-Ei and he continued to make his way through the cavern. Finally, when she reached the end, she was able to sit quietly in the shadows directly below where Gulum-Ei was talking to the apparent leader of the bandits.

"So, you were able to finally shake that little Guild rat, eh?" the leader asked.

"Wasn't difficult," Gulum said with a shrug. "After years of working for the Company, keeping quiet has become a sort of talent of mine, you could say."

"Well, you know that won't be the last of her," the leaser pointed out. "I wouldn't be surprised if-." The bandit leader cut off with a strangled cry and looked down at the Dwarven Dagger pointing from the center of his chest. When he fell away to the ground, he revealed his killer, Karianna herself dripping wet and angrier than a dragon.

"Karianna! Wait! Please don't kill me!" he begged.

"You have ten seconds to explain before I start cutting pieces off," she hissed and grabbed the Argonian's collar.

"Alright, alright! The woman you're after, the woman who's trying to ruin the Thieves Guild… it's Karliah. She's after Mercer Frey. Wants to kill him the way she killed Gallus. I was only in it for the coin, I swear!"

"If you're lying to me-."

"I'm not lying, I swear by the Eight. Tell Mercer that she's headed where the end began. He'll know what I'm talking about."

"Alright, I'll give you this one chance, then. Just know I'll be back for you if you're lying. Asset or not," she promised. But before he could begin his thanks, she cut him off. "First, though, I want you to help me hide this body and then you're going to lead me out of this cavern. _Away _from the bandits."

"Alright, I'll do it. Also, here, as proof, take the deed to Goldenglow Estate," he begged as he handed over a folded sheet of paper. There in plain ink was the same symbol as on the note from Sabjorn's office and the bill of sale from Goldenglow Estate. And right below the symbol was a name scrawled in curling letters. _Karliah. _


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

After endless days and nights riding on carriages and horseback, Karianna found herself at where "the end began." Snow Veil Sanctum. After fighting through endless waves of Ice Wraiths outside, Mercer was able to open the door to the Sanctum using a strange looking key. Before she could get a good look at it, though, Mercer slipped it back into his armor and opened the door. Like all other Nordic crypts, Snow Veil Sanctum was bursting with Draugr, undead Nord bodies brought back to life and compelled to kill anyone or anything that disturbed their home and the treasures within.

"I keep hearing about Karliah…," Karianna commented after they had cleared a room of yet another wave of Draugr. "Who is she exactly?"

Mercer Frey sighed and sheathed his swords once again. "She was my best friend in the Guild. Her and Gallus, our old leader. On one of our jobs together, though, Karliah snapped and killed Gallus. It was here, right here in Snow Veil Sanctum where it happened. That's what Gulum-Ei meant by 'where the end began.' It was here that the Thieves Guild began to lose its… luck if you will. After Karliah killed Gallus, jobs began to go sour. After the jobs began going sour, clients started leaving us. Our only regular client left is Maven. But that's only because she relies on the Guild as much as we rely on her."

Karianna nodded in understanding and they moved forward through the crypt. Through more Draugr and traps. Finally, they found themselves at a dead end. A Nordic puzzle door. Karianna had run into more than one in her travels and knew that the only way to open them was to align the right set of symbols and use a claw shaped like a dragon's made of the right material into the slots. Just as she was able to suggest they turn back and try to find another path, Mercer pulled out the strange key once more. This time, she was able to get a good look at it. Most of it seemed to be made of gold or bronze with the prongs of the key sticking out in odd angles and a glowing, blue orb topping the opposite end.

"Ahhh, an Ancient Nordic Puzzle Door, eh?" he observed. "They say these things are impossible to break into, but if you really just know how to treat them."

Karianna watched as he inserted the key into one of the slots where the dragon claw would go and with a few twists and turns, the doors slid away to reveal a darkened room.

"How in the-?" Karianna began to ask before an arrow sunk into her shoulder right where it was exposed through her armor.

The world turned a hazy sort of green before her knees gave out from under her and she collapsed to the ground. Her vision faded in and out but she was able to watch Mercer step over her body and into the room which was now flooded with light.

"Show yourself Karliah! I expect that arrow was meant for me?" Mercer shouted.

"Yes… and you have no idea how much it pains me to waste it," a cold Elven voice replied from nowhere. A moment later the voice was accompanied by the woman.

"So… _have _returned, eh? Well just so you know, you're too late. I'm ready to go for the big prize… once I've finished up here," Mercer said with a new tone of malice in his voice.

"Not if I can help it," Karliah promised before disappearing into thin air once more.

Mercer drew his swords and looked around the room. "Karliah!? Don't you _dare _run away from me!" When she didn't comply, Mercer turned and gazed down at Karianna's paralyzed form. "Hmph… I guess this is where _your _journey ends, friend."

Karianna had no time to wonder what he meant before he stabbed the sword in his right hand which glowed with an evil, red light and drained the life from her until she felt as if she were breathing through a pillow.

_'Fight!' _she told herself. _'You're the Dragonborn! You've been wounded far worse than this and lived to tell the tale, now FIGHT!'_

And it was true. She had fought dragons and undead, both of the vampiric and Draugr variety as well as a host of Forsworn Briarhearts who utilized the power given to them by Hagravens to use extremely powerful magic. But it seemed like Mercer was right. Her journey had come to an end. The final thing on her mind before she blacked out was Brynjolf.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Easy now, take it easy. You've been through a lot," the cool voice of Karliah said through the darkness.

Karianna fought and was finally able to open her eyes to see Karliah's face swimming before her. Karianna wanted to leap to her feat, draw her Elven Warhammer and attack, but her body still felt as if she had been cut open and had all over her bones and organs replaced with iron ingots. So instead, she settled for groaning pitifully and flopping back onto the bedding. Karliah pulled out a bottle and uncorked it to pour the contents into the Dragonborn's mouth for her to swallow. Despite all she had been told about Karliah being a murderer and traitor, she swallowed the potion and was instantly glad she did for it immediately lessened the pain in her head and limbs.

"There, that should help out some. You're lucky I shot you with that arrow when I did. It was tipped with a special poison I've spent years perfecting. I had enough for one shot," Karliah explained. "It wasn't meant to kill, only paralyze so that I may bring Mercer Frey back to the Guild for the justice he is owed."

She went on to explain how it was Mercer and not herself who had killed Gallus in Snow Veil Sanctum all those years ago. She had been in hiding perfecting her plan for revenge ever since. She had all the evidence to clear her name right in Gallus' journal, but unfortunately for her, Gallus encrypted his journal in a code she had no idea how to break. When Karianna took a look at the journal, she was immediately able to recognize the marking.

"It's the Falmer language!" she exclaimed. "I've gone through plenty of Dwemer ruins to recognize it. They infest the ruins all over Skyrim like you wouldn't believe."

"Hmmm, if what you're saying is true, then there's only one man I can think of who can confirm it. His name is Enthir and he works at the College of Winterhold."

"Then we'll go to him. I want to know the truth before I smash Mercer's skull in for stabbing me with that sword of his," Karianna stated.

Winterhold was a small town half buried in snow. The most prominent feature of it was not the Jarl's Headquarters, but the large stone castle that acted as the College of Winterhold to teach mages from all over Skyrim. Even though Enthir worked at the College, he was found instead in the Frozen Hearth. In the basement of the inn, he, Karliah and Karianna discussed the journal.

"You were right, Karianna," Enthir stated after studying the journal for a few tense minutes. Like everyone else associated with the Thieves Guild, Enthir thought Karliah was still a murderer. It was only after Karianna vouched for her and handed over the encrypted journal did he agree not to send for the guards.

"So you can translate it?" Karianna asked with hope.

"Unfortunately, no. There is, however, a wizard in Markarth. His name is Calcemo and he's an expert in the Falmer, particularly their language," Enthir answered.

"I'll stay here, for now. It'll be easier for you to get in and out of a city like Markarth if you're alone," Karliah said.

"Just don't go back to Riften without me," she said. "Talos knows what you'd find there if Mercer told them you were on your way here."

Karianna had been in Markarth once before and didn't particularly enjoy the experience. She was searching for sites where a dragon might be resurrected and decided to warn the Jarl of a possible attack. But the Jarl had scoffed at the notion of a dragon attacking his city. He called it impenetrable with it being carved from the mountains themselves. When she had protested, they laughed at her and had her thrown out of the Understone Keep. Add to that, the place was crawling with Imperials, most of which despised Nords, especially when they didn't agree with the White-Gold Concordat and insisted on worshipping their outlawed god, Talos.

As she walked past the guards and armored Thalmor on her way to the Keep, she kept her face hidden. The inside of the Keep was even darker and dilapidated than she remembered. Being built around the ancient Dwarven ruins that extended through the mountainside, the city was slowly crumbling. But no building showed it more than their government capitol. Giant piles of rubble flanked the stairs leading to the Jarl's throne room and dust choked the air surrounding everyone. If she remembered correctly, the court wizard could be found inside the excavation site under the Keep. And sure enough, there he was, a wizened old fool stooped forward over an Arcane Enchanter where he was studying various pieces of jewelry and gem stones.

Karianna stood behind him and cleared her throat loud enough for him to wheel around. "Are you Calcemo? The expert on the language of the Falmer?"

"I told the Jarl that I have enough bodyguards and yet he insists on sending me more?!" the man barked. "I don't need any more help! Off with you!"

Karianna looked down at herself and realized she was still wearing her Steel Plate armor. "No, you don't understand, I'm looking for your help," she said quickly as the man began walking away. "You see, I have a… series of documents I believe to have been written in the Falmer language. They were my father's, he was a very secretive man before he passed away. If I don't translate these documents, my family could lose everything."

It was a bold lie, but the man seemed to believe it even if only partially. "Alright, then I guess I could help you… for a bit of gold, that is."

Karianna agreed and quickly pulled out a small handful of gold from her coin purse.

"Where are the documents?" Calcemo asked which caused her to look at him in alarm. "I can't very well translate these documents of yours without looking at them."

She cursed silently for she knew she couldn't show him Gallus' journal. It'd give away her lie and gods only knew how many secrets of the Thieves Guild.

"I-I was just hoping to get a look at your notes. Even if it was just a chart of characters and letters!" she said desperately trying to keep in the act.

"Ha!" he scoffed. "I can't let you look at my notes! They're nowhere near finished! I don't even trust my _nephew _to look at them let alone some total stranger!"

"Please, sir! I'm begging you!" she cried in desperation and threw herself at the man's feet where she clutched his robes. "If I don't prove that my father's documents give us ownership of our homestead, my whole family will be sold into slavery! You'll condemn us all!"

"Guards! Get this Nord wench out of here! Take your filthy gold and be gone!" Calcemo wailed and wrenched his robes from her fingers.

As he turned and fled into his lab, he failed to notice Karianna pocketing a small, bronze key. And so, for the second time in her life, Karianna was thrown out of the Understone Keep but this time she knew she'd be back. That night, in the cover of darkness, she slipped inside and used the shadows to make her way to the door of Calcemo's lab. It seemed to simply be a series of rooms cluttered with Dwemer artifacts from bent and rusted bowls to gleaming swords. In one room labeled as Aicanter's study, she found a bronze staff topped with four metal prongs surrounding a red orb. When she spoke the incantation written down on a piece of paper and pointed at a spot on the floor by the door, a Dwemer Spider leapt out from one of the many ducts in the walls. It didn't seem hostile towards her, but when a guard walked by, it sent out a bolt of electricity which caused the guard to spasm and fall to the ground dead.

"Good boy," she whispered and patted it on its domed head.

With every wave of the staff, Karianna was able to command the Spider to cut down each and every guard. Finally, she found herself in a room which seemed to act as a dining area. There, at the table was a host of guards as well as a young man in robes she recognized as the wizard's nephew. There also seemed to be a series of grooves on the floor and in the walls which she immediately recognized as traps. Sure enough, when she pulled on a lever locked away behind a gate, a large explosion went off and caused all of the people in the room to flee. Through a large, bronze door on the other side of the room, she was met with the cool night air of Markarth. To her right was a set of stairs leading into a tower and over the railing below her the guards of the city were all running around trying to organize and search for the intruder.

The tower turned out to be Calcemo's room. Up a winding staircase was a set of doors leading to his bed chamber and outside of another set of doors was a balcony with a gigantic stone table covered in the same script as in Gallus' journal. And there, locked away in a display case was a green leather-bound book with gold letters on the front reading _Falmer Language Guide: A Guide To The Lost Language Of The Snow Elves Turned Falmer. _No sooner had she tucked the guide away into her armor than she heard the crashing of doors and shouts. The wizard's nephew had arrived flanked by guards.

"Something is wrong here. Whoever is trying to sabotage my uncle's work is in this room. Spread out and find them… then kill them!" he ordered.

Karianna swallowed hard and ducked down further into the shadows of the stone tablet. She pulled the staff back out and pointed it at the area beside the nephew but to no avail. Cursing silently, she looked around the room for an opening.

"There!" a voice shouted when she peeked out once more.

There was a sudden blast and Karianna was thrown out into the open at the feet of the young wizard.

"I knew it!" he snarled.

Karianna leapt to her feet and tried the staff once more. The nephew laughed and sent a bolt of electricity through her body.

"That staff only works in the lab," he sneered with glee.

Unable to reply with a snide remark, she settled for bringing the staff down hard onto the young man's head. Not hard enough to kill him but certainly hard enough to disrupt his spell and bring him to his knees. Seizing the opportunity, she ran for the door and ducked behind an outcropping of rocks. As the guards ran past towards the main part of the lab, Karianna backed up even further until her foot slipped and she was falling through air down into the pool of water below the base of one of Markarth's many waterfalls.

By the time she made it all the way back to Winterhold and the Frozen Hearth inn, she was honestly too exhausted to be angry. Instead, she simply tossed the Guide down onto the table in front of Enthir and ordered a large meal filled with plenty of mead and meat. It was dawn by the time he finished translating the journal and was able to confirm Karliah's story as well as fill in the holes left behind by unanswered questions.

"We have to take this to the Guild as soon as possible," Karliah gasped as she stared at the journal entries.

"I'm guessing it's too much to ask for a day's rest, huh?" Karianna asked who was growing weary of travelling.

When Karliah began to protest, Karianna held up her hands and said they might as well get on with it the travel preparations.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Okay, go through the Ratway and wait for me in the Ragged Flagon," Karianna told Karliah when they made it into Riften. "I'll talk to the others, try to get them to hear me out before you tell them your side of the story."

Karliah simply nodded in response and headed down to the door. She seemed extremely nervous to be back in the Thieves Guild's home city. With a sigh, Karianna walked over behind the Temple of Mara and into the cemetery. There, amongst the headstones and Nightshade stood a mausoleum bearing the symbol for the Thieves Guild: a circle set into a diamond. On the stone sarcophagus was a button in the same shape which, when pushed, opened the floor beneath her feet and revealed a set of stone steps leading to a hole covered in wooden boards. Beneath that was a rickety ladder which Karianna used to get into the Cistern for the Ragged Flagon. It looked like every member of the Thieves Guild had been called in for a meeting of sorts for they all stood around the center platform where Mercer Frey was giving a speech beside Brynjolf.

"We can't let Karliah slip away again," Mercer was saying. "She's already killed two members of the Guild and who's to say she won't kill more? She _must _be brought to justice!"

"Karianna?" Brynjolf asked suddenly as he spotted her.

He pushed his way through the crowd which was now whispering.

"Impossible!" Mercer's voice shouted above everyone.

"I can't believe it, you're alive," Brynjolf murmured. He grasped her by the shoulders and examined her. "It's a miracle!"

"No, it was Karliah," she protested.

"Yes, we know. Mercer told us how Karliah shot you."

"She did, but only so she could save me," she explained. "Look, there isn't much time, we have to stop Mercer."

"Stop Mercer from doing what?"

As quickly as she could, Karianna explained the story. How Karliah, Gallus and Mercer had been part of an ancient sect of the Thieves Guild known as the Nightingales; how Mercer had killed Gallus because he suspected Mercer of stealing from the Guild; how Mercer tried to kill her but Karliah had saved her life.

"Where's Karliah, now?" Brynjolf asked.

"In the Ragged Flagon."

"Okay, go and get her, we'll detain Mercer. Delvin!"

"He's gone!" Delvin called out.

Sure enough, Mercer Frey had disappeared.

"Shit, he must have slipped away when we weren't looking," Brynjolf cursed. He paused for a moment in order to think. "Before we go running after him and accusing him of murder, we need the evidence."

"I'll go search his house, then, there has to be something there," Karianna suggested.

"Yes, good. Just watch out for Mercer's bodyguard, Vald. He's a mean son of a bitch, but if you offer him some coin, he might just turn the other cheek."

Brynjolf hadn't been kidding about Vald. As soon as Karianna crept up to the gate, Vald came sprinting out of seemingly nowhere and nearly chopped her hands off as she was picking the lock. When she came back, the gate was lit up with torches and the only shadows were along the wall. She quickly judged the height of the wall and decided to run at it in order to leap over it. On the other side of the wall, she kept to the shadows as she made her way to the door only to find it barred shut. With a curse, she began climbing the trellis leading down from a balcony where she was able to climb through an open window.

As Karianna crept silently through the empty halls of the house, she noticed all of the lavish decorations and wondered how no one had noticed that Mercer was stealing from the Guild. Even though Gallus' death had taken the secret to the grave with him, Mercer wasn't officially supposed to have access to the vault. She had learned this when they searched the vault to find it empty. He had taken every piece of gold or item of value with him. Even the shelves behind the Guildmaster's desk stood empty of it's rare treasures. But she put all of this out of her mind once she reached the basement. The rest of the house was devoid of any secrets, not even so much as a hidden room or compartment. All that remained was the basement.

"Where could it be?" she asked feeling the frustration build in her.

She threw open a wardrobe and when she found it to be empty of even a speck of dust, she shouted in anger and banged her fists on the back wall. That was when it shifted and slid aside to reveal a hidden passage.

At the end of a narrow passageway, she found a door guarded by traps but easily evaded by a combination of light footing and quick hands. Inside the room, she hit the mother-load. It was full to the brim with piles of gold and bowls of jewels. Through a little path between the gold, she was able to make her way to a desk with a book open on top of it. _Mercer's journal! _With a thanks to the Nine Divines, she slid the book into her armor and began to backtrack through the house.

On the first floor, Karianna found the door that had been barred from entry. She heaved the wooden beam holding the door shut aside and threw open the doors. But instead of finding herself in the cold night air, she instead found herself on her back with a strong pair of hands around her throat. At first she thought that Mercer had returned for the riches in his basement, but then she remembered that Vald was guarding the house and cursed her own stupidity.

"Mercer's not gonna be happy to find out that one of his own Guild members is stealing from him," Vald hissed in her ear.

Beneath his hulking form, Karianna drew her knees to her chest and pressed the palms of her hands and the balls of her feet into Vald's chest. Gathering all of the remaining strength in her, she was able to heave the man off of her. He leaned back and swung his arms to regain his balance, when he came back down, she whipped out her Dwarven Dagger from her belt and sliced at the exposed skin of his abdomen. As he screamed in pain from the dual power of the deep cut and the Frostbite Spider venom she had dipped the dagger in, she rolled out of the way and readied herself for another attack.

But it never came, for when he reared up for the next attack, a blade whipped around his throat and left an angry red slit in its wake. Vald clutched at the ragged cut as if he hoped to hold in the life bleeding out of him. It was in vain, though, as a second later, he collapsed to the floor in a lifeless heap. Karianna, still breathing through a bruised windpipe, looked up at her savior.

"Brynjolf," she croaked.

"Don't speak," he ordered and examined the bruises forming around her neck. "It looks like he got you pretty good, lass."

She couldn't help but smile. He was like her shadow on every mission she had in Riften. But her smile quickly faded as she remembered why they were in Mercer's house in the first place.

"I found this." She pulled the journal from her armor and handed it over.

Brynjolf flipped open the journal and quickly scanned the pages before snapping it shut with a nod. "That's a good job, there, lassie. You should probably get some rest, now. You've more than earned it."

As soon as he said it, she realized how tired she felt. He pulled out a little bottle and had her drink it before he headed back to the Thieves Guild leaving Karianna behind.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

When Karianna finally stepped out of the house, the sky was turning from inky black to steel grey. She walked around to the front of the house and sat down on the stone steps of the building next door to Mercer Frey's house. The potion Brynjolf had given her more than helped her throat. In the reflection of her dagger, she watched the bruises fade and felt the swelling leave.

When the sky was beginning to change into a sheet of pink tinged with gold, she turned and looked at the building she was sitting in front of. It was the Temple of Mara. Right behind it stood the cemetery which housed the hidden entrance to the Thieves Guild. Even though she had been in Riften for a while, now, she had never been inside the Temple of Mara. Nor did she even know what Mara was a patron of seeing as her memory before waking up in a carriage as a prisoner on the way to her execution was completely blank even to this day. She always felt awkward asking priests and priestesses about the deity they serve even though they treated her as a foreigner. She knew she should know every name of the Nine Divines. Their names stuck to her tongue when she tried to recall their stories but it was only after hearing the stories again that she felt the puzzle pieces fall into place.

"You look troubled, my child," a gentle voice commented.

She wheeled around and looked at the stranger who disrupted her train of thought. It was a priest she recognized from the Bee and the Barb who occasionally stood and tried to convince the patrons to repent.

"I… I was trying to remember something," she admitted.

"What were you trying to remember?" he asked in a kind tone.

"The story of Mara." She gestured to the temple.

The priest broke out into a smile. "Ah, of course. Mara is, as you know, one of the Nine Divines. She is the wife of Akatosh and the handmaiden of Kyne. She is considered by many as the Mother-Goddess and by all to be the goddess of love. Here in Skyrim, women who are available and ready for marriage wear her amulet. This allows a man, usually one the woman has been courting, to propose to her. And then of course, there's her verse: _Come to me, Mara, for without you, I might forget the ways of our fathers, and preening by the light of latest fashion, my words might tremble like the thin reeds of novelty in the tempest of enthusiasms._"

"Where… where can I find an Amulet of Mara?" Karianna asked.

"Why… we make them right here at the temple. I'd be happy to provide you with one for two-hundred septims," the priest said kindly.

A few minutes later, she departed from the temple with her newly purchased amulet safely wrapped in the piece of cloth Brynjolf had used to dress her wounds and tucked away deep into her armor. When she knew the priest had gone inside, she walked around the temple to the cemetery. Just as she was opening to entrance to the Guild, she ran into Devin who told her that Brynjolf and Karliah were looking for her.

"They know where to find Mercer and they want your help catching him," Delvin explained.

In order to prepare for the final fight with Mercer, Karliah explained that they needed to become initiated as Nightingales. Only with the blessing of Nocturnal, their patron deity, would they be able to truly kill Mercer and retrieve what he has stolen.

"You mean that strange key he used to get into Snow Veil Sanctum," Karianna verified.

"Yes. It is known as the Skelton Key. It's the principal artifact belonging to Nocturnal. An unbreakable lockpick that can be used on any and all doors in the mortal world," Karliah explained.

"No one deserves that kind of power," Karianna muttered.

At this, Karliah nodded in agreement. "Good, then you understand the severity of Mercer Frey's crime. Unfortunately, the only way we can restore balance to the Guild is to return the Skeleton Key to the Twilight Sepulcher, Nocturnal's temple. Her shrine. And the only way to gain access to _that _is by joining the Nightingales by taking on Nocturnal's oath and blessing."

"And you want the three of us to do just that," Brynjolf confirmed.

"Yes."

"Then what are we waiting for? I'm ready to send that bastard to Oblivion," Karianna sneered.

The journey to the Nightingales' home wasn't too far. It stood just south of Riften near the Shadow Stone where Necromancers tended to gather for their profane rituals. Nightingale Hall was a long way from its former glory but as they walked through the ancient halls, Karianna was able to sense what the place had once been. Once they had dawned their new armor in the Nightingale fashion, they took their places on the floor glyphs atop three pillars that surrounded a central pillar.

"Nocturnal, our Night Mother, please accept our devotion. Accept our service. Allow us to serve you. To protect you. Give us your blessing so we may uphold your honor," Karliah chanted once they were in place.

As Karliah chanted, a large ball of energy formed on the center pillar which made the hair on the back of Karianna's neck stand on end. She watched the ball of energy grow and could swear that the shadows around the room undulated in the presence of the energy. Once Karliah had finished her chant for the third time, a cool voice appeared from everywhere and nowhere.

"Ahhh, my dear Karliah. I see you return," the voice crooned. "And… you bring two new initiates."

"Nocturnal, we wish to take on your blessing in order to retrieve the Skelton Key from the traitorous Mercer Frey," Karliah replied.

"But, my dear Karliah, you have nothing to offer me unlike these initiates. You have already pledged your life to me." The shadows around the room continued to move and take on new shapes as Nocturnal spoke. "And you have failed," she added.

"That is true, my lady, but I _can_ offer you the head of Mercer Frey. He is the one at fault. He was the one who killed Gallus and stole from his own companions as well as yourself."

After a moment's consideration, Nocturnal agreed and had the trio repeat the oath. Once completed and accepted, the newly inducted Nightingales departed for Mercer Frey's location.

"Which is where?" Karianna asked as they prepared their horses.

"Irkngthand. It is said to house the only known image of the Falmer before they became the creatures they are now," Karliah explained.

"They used to be known as the Snow Elves, right?" Karianna inquired remembering the book she had stolen from Calcemo.

"Correct," Karliah confirmed. "That is, until their leader was killed by a Nord child seeking revenge for the death of her mother at the hands of the Snow Prince himself. After their leader died, the Snow Elves retreated and were taken in as slaves to the Dwemer. They were fed toxic mushrooms in order to make them more… compliant. This caused them to degenerate into what they are now. Only one visage remains of their former leader, the Snow Prince. The eyes of this statue are known as-."

"The Eyes of the Falmer," Brynjolf finished

"Yes."

It took them many nights to reach Irkngthand, luckily, though, according to the journal, Mercer didn't plan on heading straight for the Dwemer city. Instead, he was going to make a few stops to pay off some debts and steal some loot he had his eyes on before going west of Windhelm where Irkngthand stood. When they reached the snowy mountains encompassing the ruins, Karliah left to scout the area as Brynjolf and Karianna set up their camp. When they had finished setting things up, they sat in silence and waited for Karliah.

Finally, they couldn't take the silence any longer.

"Brynjolf."

"Karianna."

They stopped and realized they had spoken simultaneously.

"You first," Karianna chuckled.

"No," he insisted, "ladies first."

The Dragonborn paused and thought for a brief moment. "I wanted to thank you… for saving my life, I mean. You were there for me… twice."

"Well, the first time you didn't necessarily need saving so much as patching up." Brynjolf looked into their small fire. Was it just a trick of the light or was his face turning red? "I wanted to thank you, as well…," he added. "For potentially saving the Guild. And I'm sorry."

"For what?" she asked.

"For getting you mixed up in all of this. There's a chance we might not all make it."

Karianna laughed. "I've been in worse situations than this." She moved closer to him on the log they shared by the fire. "And besides, this is probably the most fun I've had since I slayed my first dragon."

Now it was Brynjolf's turn to laugh. "A dragon slayer, a thief… is there anything you can't do?"

She smiled and turned to say something else but stopped. He was looking at her with such eyes… she had never seen anyone look at her like that before. Or maybe, she just hadn't been paying attention when they did. Her smile faded when he reached for her face and pulled her in for a kiss which cut through the chill she hadn't noticed was there before. Her Nordic blood usually kept her warm on even the coldest nights on the highest peak of the Throat of the World where she had trained to use her Thu'um, but now a different kind of warmth spread through her.

At the sound of a snapping branch and a light footfall through the snow, they broke apart to find Karliah standing at the edge of their camp. Karianna quickly slid away and wondered how much Karliah had seen. Her unspoken question was left unanswered as Karliah gave them a report of bandits who had taken over the outside of the ruins and were using it as their own base of operations.

"Then I guess it's time to go bandit hunting," Karianna said grabbing for her hammer.

"Not until we're sure Mercer has gone inside," Karliah ordered. "If he comes and finds an empty bandit camp, he'll flee and gods only know what he'll do next."

"How long do you suggest we wait?" Brynjolf asked.

"Until next nightfall. We'll spread out and communicate using the Nightingales' Call."

"Alright, as soon as the sun sets tomorrow night, we'll go in and slay the bandits. We don't need them coming in after us and barring the exit. Until then…." Karianna's voice trailed off.

"Until then." Karliah and Brynjolf agreed.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

It was nearly dawn by the time Mercer Frey finally showed up. One lone bandit was standing guard outside the doors leading inside but he was no match for Mercer's sword. The same sword he had used on Karianna to drain the very life from her body. Once he had covered the body with a fur pelt to make it look like he was asleep, Mercer slipped inside. When Karliah gave the signal for them to move, they emerged from their hiding spots and crept up on the still sleeping bandits.

"I'll go in first and pick off any stragglers," Karliah said when they were at the large, ornate doors separating the ancient Dwemer ruins from the rest of the world. "Brynjolf follow me and Karianna can pick up the rear."

The two Nightingales nodded in agreement to their senior and followed her lead. With the new armor, their movements were as silent as the wind, even on the hard stone floors in the ruins. Even though the bodies littering the passageways were all dead, they kept to the shadows in case anything should try to catch them by surprise. Occasionally, a mechanical spider or spherical sentry wandered into their paths, no doubt woken up by Mercer's intrusion, but they were quickly dispatched by one of Karliah's arrows. Eventually they found their way to another set of large doors which were left ajar due to the dead body of a Falmer being wedged into the doorway.

"Great, I really hate the Falmer," Karianna whispered to herself but apparently Brynjolf had heard her for he chuckled in reply.

"Look! Down there!" Karliah said quietly.

They followed her gaze down over the outcropping they were on to see a dark figure moving through the mist and shadows that filled the room. Every time the shadow reached a Falmer sentry, the sentry would drop dead. The Falmer's blinded eyesight kept them from seeing their comrades' demise and Mercer's silent movements prevented their death cries from being noticed.

"That bastard's a step ahead of us," Brynjolf cursed. "C'mon, we have to hurry."

Continuing on as silently as possible, they dispatched the remaining Falmer. The operation was running smoothly until they reached the next room which was filled to the brim with Falmer of every variety along with their little pets the Chaurus. In the center of the room was a gargantuan automaton Karianna recognized as a Centurion. She followed the pipework surrounding it to a control panel directly to their left.

"Guys, I know how we can get rid of the Falmer."

She quickly explained to them her plan. Brynjolf seemed all for the plan but Karliah was hesitant.

"What if it turns on us and attacks?" she asked.

"Then we kill it," Karianna replied with a shrug.

"Yeah, the three of us, there no way that thing stand a chance," Brynjolf agreed.

Even though the controls were labeled in Dwarven characters, Karianna managed to find the right lever which activated the Centurion. With the hiss of escaping steam and huge footsteps that seemed to shake the cavern, the automaton sprang to life and immediately targeted the surrounding Falmer. The trio took refuge behind the control panel until the Centurion smashed it to pieces. They leapt into action, abandoning all hope of stealth and began cutting down enemies. Karliah climbed onto a ledge and picked off what she could. Meanwhile, Brynjolf and Karianna dove into the thick of things and began cutting through the ranks of Falmer left behind by the Centurion. When the numbers had thinned considerably, Karianna focused her attacks on the Centurion itself as Brynjolf held off the remaining Falmer.

At long last, the Dragonborn finished off the Centurion. It stood in place for a few moments before leaning and finally tipping over. Karianna might have been able to doge it, but a few straggling Falmer distracted her. Even though she was able to dispatch them quickly, this still kept her from noticing the gargantuan automaton that was about to crush her.

"Karianna! Look out!" Karliah cried from her perch.

Brynjolf rushed forward, threw his arms around her and pulled her to safety. Karianna was still in shock to realize that she was clutching onto the front of Brynjolf's armor for dear life until she heard his all too familiar chuckle in her ear. Feeling her face burn hot and thanking the Eight that her mask covered it, she let go and push away.

"Are you alright?" Karliah asked as she ran up to them.

"Yeah, everything's fine!" Karianna said quickly. She hoped they didn't notice the quiver in her voice.

_'Pull yourself together. There's no reason to act like this,' _she scolded herself.

She quickly looked around the cavernous room they were in for any clues as to where Mercer went. The walls were rough but unbroken and all of the crude Falmer huts had only one entrance and exit. All that remained was the large door with Dwarven carvings to decorate the metal once she eliminated the way they had come which was now clogged with the dead bodies of countless Falmer warriors and mages. For a fleeting moment, Karianna wondered just how large the population was. Despite the numbers she had slaughtered in her travels, they still seemed to pour endlessly from the very depths of the earth.

"Karianna? Are you alright, love?" Brynjolf asked.

'Love?' No. Sure she heard him wrong. Shaking her head to dispel the thought, she pointed at the door just visible through the blue glow that filled the cavern.

"I'm no tracking expert, but I'm pretty sure Mercer Frey went that way."

"Then, let's go. We have no time to waste," Karliah said.

Indeed he was there. As was the statue depicting the Snow Prince. The last known visual representation of the Snow Elves before they devolved into the creatures they are now. Mercer was clinging to the face of the statue and prying the remaining eye from its socket. No doubt the bulging package strapped to his side contained the right eye. Karliah hushed them and ducked into the shadows behind a boulder.

"There he is," she said bitterly.

"It seems he hasn't spotted us, yet," Brynjolf observed. "Karliah. You-."

"Karliah, you sly fox. I know you're down there," Mercer yelled suddenly. With one more strike with his tool, the eye tumbled free and he was able to jump down from the statue's face to tuck it away next to its brother. "And you've brought the Dragonborn, I see."

Karianna felt rage course through her system. Against her companions' advices, she stepped out from the shadows.

"Give it up, Mercer. We have you cornered," she said evenly.

The former Guild Master laughed. "No, little thief, it's _you_ who is cornered. I have the Skeleton Key! The power of our Lady Nocturnal herself! What do _you _have? Her _blessing_?"

He was mocking her. She knew it. But is words were true nonetheless. Mercer held untold power with that Key. Karliah had told them how it was not only able to unlock any mortal lock, but all the potential hidden away inside a person. Even from the base of the statue she could feel the power emanating from him and see the shadows moving toward him as if they wished to embrace him and hide him away from any and all eyes.

"Enough talk," Karianna snarled and drew her warhammer. "Give us the Skeleton Key or I'll pry it from your cold, dead fingers."

Mercer threw his head back and laughed once more before he disappeared from sight. "Come and get it," his disembodied voice said.

"Branch out! We can't let him escape!" Brynjolf ordered. "Karliah, make sure he doesn't get past you. Karianna, you take the right side, I'll take the left. Keep your eyes sharp."

About halfway up the stairs that lead around the statue, Karianna felt a sharp pain in her side and felt her life drain away. She remembered enough from Snow Veil Sanctum to know it was Mercer's blade. So she whirled and swung her hammer before her, hoping to land a strike. A soft chuckle from the top of the stairs alerted her to his presence. Winding up once more, she charged and sung blindly only to miss. A blow to the back of her neck caused her to lose her grip on her hammer and a strong kick from nowhere sent it flying over the edge.

"Karianna! Look out!" Karliah shouted from below.

Just then, invisible hands gripped her throat and cut the air off from her lungs.

"Shoot him, Karliah!" Brynjolf's frantic shout came from her left.

"I can't! I don't have a clear shot!"

Mercer laughed. His hot breath hit her face like a wave. "That's right. The mighty Dragonborn is cut down once and for all by a _petty _thief! Where's that famous Shout of yours? _Sabre cat got your tongue?!"_

Karianna gathered her remaining strength and placed a foot to his chest to push him off. She nearly collapsed as the oxygen rushed back into her.

"That's right, I _am _the Dragonborn," she choked as her vision cleared. She kept her eyes to the ground and watched his footprints in the dirt. "I've slayed more dragons than you could count. And you know what, Mercer? That unlocks something in you after a while."

_There! _He was in the perfect position. Ignoring the pain in her throat and chest, she drew in as much air as she could hold.

"_FUS…. ROH! DAH!" _

The Shout of Unrelenting Force hit Mercer Frey full on and with enough strength to destroy the invisibility spell that cloaked him. The three Nightingales watched as he slammed into the wall above Karliah with a sickening crack and tumbled down where he landed with his neck at an impossible angle. The Elven woman grabbed the Skeleton Key and the Eyes of the Falmer before running to join her companions at the base of the statue. Not soon after Karianna recovered her hammer and sheathed it on her back once more did a rumbling shake the cavern. Cracks appeared in the ceiling and the ancient pipes burst one by one and dumped their contents on the thieves. At the same moment, the statue's head broke away to reveal a hidden passageway that, although filled with more water, seemed to lead to the surface.

"Here!" Brynjolf cried and tossed the women Waterbreathing potions. "Wait unti the right moment!"

That moment, it seemed, came all too soon as they were submerged in murky water. Karianna had no idea how long the potion would last so she swam with all her might towards the dim light that filtered through. At one point she got caught on a piece of debris and heard the sound of ripping fabric but she had no time to stop and make sure she hadn't lost anything. It was only when she felt as if her lungs would burst that her head broke through the surface and air, cold and crisp, flooded her lungs. For her remaining years, she promised the Divines that she would never take fresh air for granted again. Once her vision cleared and she was able to make out the shoreline, she mustered whatever energy she had left and swam for it.

"Where's Brynjolf?" she gasped when she flopped onto the shore beside Karliah.

"I don't know," she panted. "I thought he was behind you."

"No…," Karianna moaned and turned back to the lake they had just swam out of.

They watched the water until a fog rolled in and a chill crept through their armor and into their bones. Brynjolf never surfaced.

Karianna had been in countless battles in her life. Each battle was filled with loss on both sides of the field. Friends. Companions. Shield brothers and sisters. From the day she awoke next to Ulfric Stormcloak in a carriage bound for execution she had been surrounded by death. But this loss cut her like none other. Tears welled up in her eyes for the first time she could remember.

"Brynjolf," she sobbed. The tears spilled over and cut through the chill in her face. "It's all my fault…. I used the Shout to kill Mercer…. I caused the cavern to collapse and flood."

Karliah said nothing to object but simply looked at Karianna with sad eyes.

Karianna reached into her armor to pull out the Amulet of Mara only to find it missing. All that was left was the fabric Brynjolf had used to mend her wounds at Goldenglow Estate. She gripped it tightly as a fresh pain cut through her chest. She would have gladly been stabbed by a dozen copies of Mercer's blade.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"Are you sure you can't come along with me to return the Key?" Karianna asked and nervously eyed the door to the Twilight Sepulcher.

Karliah shook her head solemnly. "I'm afraid the Pilgrim's Path is something that must be undertaken alone. It will be a harsh road, but I'm confident you can do it. Besides, with my failure to Nocturnal still so fresh, I fear the consequences should I attempt to return the Key myself."

"Right…." Karianna steeled her nerves and entered the hallowed halls of the Sepulcher.

Wary as to what lay ahead of her, she kept her warhammer drawn and inched forward as quietly as she could. There, in a large room filled with unlit torches and pillars columns wrapped in cobwebs, she found a guardian of the Sepulcher. The specter was sitting on a set of stairs leading to a large wooden door with an air of defeat about him. There was something familiar about him, though. Karianna tried to look past the translucent nature of his being and wracked her brains for who it could be. Her first thought was Brynjolf but the specter sitting before her was too lean to be him. It was only when she drew nearer did it hit her.

"Gallus?" she asked uncertainly. She had seen his face once on a dusty and worn portrait hanging in Nightingale Hall. When he looked up at her, she was sure it was him. The former Guild Master and Nightingale.

"I haven't been referred to by that name in what seems like an eternity. How do you know of me, child?"

"Karliah told me about you… how Mercer betrayed and murdered you…," she explained.

"Karliah? She's alive?" Gallus' ghost seemed very excited to learn this news.

"Yes, but she was too afraid to deliver the Key herself because of Nocturnal," Karianna said.

"The Key! You have it?!" The once Gallus leaped to his feet with renewed vigor.

To prove her claim she pulled the Key from her armor and held it out to the ghost.

"Then… it is not too late! You must hurry, then! Follow the Pilgrim's Path and find the Ebonmere! Once the Key is returned, balance will finally be restored."

"Are there… others like you here?" Karianna asked.

Gallus looked at the door behind him and sighed as softly as a breeze ruffles the leaves on a tree.

"Unfortunately, yes. But they have become corrupted. Tainted due to being cut off from the Ebonmere for so long. Even I feel myself weakening as we speak and I fear I don't have much longer before I become one of them."

"Wish me luck, then." With new determination, Karianna gripped the Key tightly in her fist and entered the door.

The first trial was a simple matter of sneaking past a trio of corrupted sentinels. It was hard to tell where they were sometimes due to their translucent quality, but Karianna found that they weren't very silent with their attack approach. A single archer shot arrows at her with hit and miss accuracy while the other two attacked head on with swords. Once the specters were dispatched, she made her way around the statue against one wall and into the next room. This one didn't seem to be guarded but instead was very dark with bright patches of light from unknown sources. When she first tried to step across one of the patches of light, she received an immense shock and quickly jumped back into the safety of the shadows.

That's when she saw the dead body of a bandit laying half in and half out of the shadows. One hand was clutched around a piece of parchment which read _'The light is the enemy. Stick to the shadows.' _Karianna came to the conclusion that the bandit had died reading the note, too stupid to follow the advice immediately.

Even without the added challenge of the harming light, the trial was extremely difficult with many a trap which, when triggered, shot a volley of poison tipped arrows at any soul unlucky enough to walk into them. She wondered vaguely who set the traps each time a bandit or stray adventurer triggered them only to parish at the hands of the poison or the light or even the sentinels that may yet lay ahead.

She was quite right about the hoard of sentinels guarding the trap ridden path to the Ebonmere. Part of her hated to kill the sentinels, corrupted or not, and so she hoped they were able to serve Nocturnal in the Evergloam after being freed from the mortal plane once and for all. Another part of her wondered about Brynjolf. Each time she thought about him, guilt built up in her chest and threatened to send more tears pouring from her eyes. As much as he angered her in the beginning with his deception and little tricks, she couldn't bear walking through the Guild without seeing him in the training room or discussing more contracts with other Guild members.

_'Stop it. You have to focus on the task at hand or there may be no Guild to return to,' _she scolded herself.

The final room was dead ahead of her. In it stood a statue in the image of Nocturnal wearing great, flowing robes that hugged her gracious curves and with outstretched arms where a pair of black birds rested. At the foot of the statue stood a small shrine and offering as well as another dead bandit. Karianna couldn't tell what killed him. it could have been the corrupted sentinels but she did know that he hadn't been able to see past the simple puzzle which unlocked the hidden door behind the statue. Or, he did unlock the door but a sentinel slayed him and reset the puzzle before he could step through.

She walked through the corridor as she pondered this and so was unable to see the large pit that stretched before her. As such, the Dragonborn tumbled down into the pit where her fall was broken by a skeleton. After dislodging one of the skeleton's rib bones from her armor, she stood and looked carefully around her new prison. There on the floor beside the skeleton she had landed on was another piece of parchment. She picked it up and hoped it gave her some clues.

_'I can't believe it. I came all this way, solved all of those ridiculous riddles just to end up here! After I memorized Nystrom's clues he'd collected from Lythelus, I slit his throat. Now I guess the joke's on me, because I'm stuck here and I don't see a way out. Hope someone comes by soon, I'm getting hungry.'_

It was signed by a man named Anders but there didn't seem to be any clue as to how to get out of the pit or to move forward. Perplexed, Karianna slumped against the edge of her cell and sank to the floor. Why would Nocturnal lead her into this pit? There was no other way to go, at least, none that she had seen. Perhaps she could climb out and go back to search for another way.

"All this trouble for a Key," she said with a sad sigh.

_The Key. _Maybe it was the answer. Tossing aside the note, she withdrew the Skeleton Key once more and stared at it. Such a small thing and yet it held so much power. No wonder so many seemed so eager to find it and keep it for their own. But this power took all the challenge and fun out of being a thief. What was so enjoyable about being able to break through any lock you come across and steal whatever treasure it guards? Sure the rewards would be great, but it would be immensely boring to get whatever you wanted so easily. There was no thrill in the chase or fear of being detected. Being able to cheat your way to victory took the fun out of the victory itself.

When she looked up from the key, she found herself suddenly in a different room. This one was bathed in shadows of purple and blue and in the center sat a small hole that seemed built to house the Skeleton Key. As soon as the Key was slid back into its home, the whole floor changed to reveal a large fountain. From the fountain emerged Nocturnal herself.

"Ah, there you are, at last." Despite the tone in her voice, Nocturnal seemed pleased by Karianna's success. "So. You have returned the Skeleton Key back to its rightful place of honor. I don't know what exactly you expected as a reward. A pat on the back? A kiss on the cheek? Hmph. Your only reward should be the satisfaction that you have served you Mother well, as was expected from the moment you took on the contract. Now go, there is certainly much work to be done now that my shadows are once again open to you."

As soon as Nocturnal disappeared back into the swirling vortex in the fountain, Karliah stepped through one of the purplish-blue portals that had opened on the wall when the Key was slid back into place.

"You did it," Karliah whispered in awe. "And Nocturnal seemed awfully pleased with your efforts."

"Pleased? She seemed… indifferent."

"Don't be so harsh on her. She isn't so much an evil deity looking to use her worshippers leverage as she is a strict mother pushing her children to strive and succeed."

"Karliah?" asked a new voice.

It was Gallus. He no longer seemed the defeated ghost sitting at the steps of the Sepulcher having almost lost hope. Now he radiated power thanks to the Ebonmere.

"Gallus… I thought… I thought I would never see you again," Karliah gasped. She reached out to touch his face but her fingers went right through him so instead she let her hand fall to her side.

"It's so good to see you once more before my departure," Gallus said moving as close as he dared.

"What do you mean, my love?" she asked softly.

"My contract has been fulfilled and I must now leave to serve our Lady Nocturnal in the Evergloam," he explained sadly.

"Will I ever see you again?"

"When your contract has been fulfilled as well, we will once more embrace. Take care, Karliah, my love. May shadows preserve you." And with those parting words, Gallus faded into nothingness.

The two stood in silence for a few moments until Karianna finally took Karliah's arm and guided her through the portal to the entrance.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

The Guild, though in mourning at the loss of Brynjolf, was more than happy to name Karianna as the new Guild Master. Gold was pouring in from every corner of Skyrim with all the contracts people were so eager to make with them. The Dragonborn did her best to lead the Guild down the right path, but soon, she became restless and began requesting small contracts here and there. Eventually she was taking on bigger ones that lead her across the nine holds through many different territories and terrain. Anything to distract her from the pain. The pain brought on by the final realization that Brynjolf was never coming back.

She began running herself ragged and cracks began to show around the edges. She began making mistakes. Small ones at first, a misplaced footstep here, a clank of displaced silverware there, then the bigger mistakes came that cost her gold and put her in danger of capture. Finally, on a job in Solitude, she made her final mistake. She had failed to make sure she wasn't spotted while picking the lock to the back door of a mansion and so when she exited with her prize, the entire city's guard and even a few Penitus Oculatus agents surrounded her before she even had the chance to close the door behind her.

Karianna was far too tired to fight and so she chose instead to surrender. Her cell in Castle Dour was dark and dank with a small cot hanging loosely on one wall devoid of any bedding. The guards had promised her a very long stay for her crimes against Skyrim and the city of Solitude but she still held out hope that contacts in the city got word to her Guild soon enough that their Guild Master was imprisoned. Sighing in defeat, she sat on the cot and pulled out the only thing she was able to keep from the things they took from her after dressing her in prisoners' rags. The cloth she had used to wrap the Amulet of Mara in and the same cloth used by Brynjolf so long ago to mend her wounds.

"I can't believe you still have that, lass," an all too familiar voice said from the doorway of her cell.

Karianna looked up to see him standing there. Not a specter or even a vision. The real Brynjolf alive and in the flesh.

"You're alive!" she cried as she leapt from her seat and grasped the bars of her cell. "But how?"

Brynjolf chuckled as he worked the lock on her cell. "Quiet, now. We can't have you alerting the guards."

"How?" she insisted.

"They're sleeping not even two rooms away," he pointed out playfully and finally opened the door of her cell.

Karianna smacked him on the back of the head a he rose and demanded the real story.

"Well, you see, lass, I simply came up on the opposite side of the lake as you and Karliah," he explained and rubbed the sore spot on his head. "It was a pretty damn big lake, if you remember. Without a horse it took me forever to reach town and by then a chill had set in. The innkeeper insisted I stay until I was well. She was actually a very nice lady. She wanted me to marry one of her daughters, I think, I'm not very versed in the Orcish tongue, you see.

"I only had arrived back at the Guild a half day after you left for this job in Solitude. I had hoped to surprise you after you finished the job, but you got yourself arrested. So now I'm here to save your ass… again."

Fighting the urge to burst into tears of joy, she insisted they leave.

"I already have your things, including the target. But we can't go back that way. There are far too many guards."

"Then how do you suggest we escape?" she demanded as she slipped into her armor.

"The markings." He laughed at the look of confusion on her face. "I take it you never read Delvin Mallory's book."

"I might have skimmed it," she mumbled.

He explained to her that all over Skyrim were markings made by thieves to show where good targets were as well as the location of safe houses and escape routes.

"But before we leave, I thought I should return this to you." From his pocket he pulled out Karianna's Amulet of Mara. The same one she had lost in the escape from the Dwemer ruins. As he slipped it over her head, she felt her face burn red hot. "A woman must wear this in order for a man to propose," he said softly. She looked up at him and saw the softness in his eyes. "Will you? Marry me, I mean?"

"Of course." She beamed at him and shared a brief kiss before they made their grand escape.


	13. Bonus Chapter

**BONUS CHAPTER**

The sun was low in the sky and the water shone a brilliant gold in its light. Karianna walked through the cemetery and into the marketplace looking for something to pass the time. There weren't any jobs for her to do and everyone else was busy with little jobs within the Guild headquarters or training. Brynjolf had promised to take her on a job that night but until then, she had nothing to do. She was just thinking about how it would be nice to have a place to go in Riften besides the Guild or the Bee and Barb when she saw the posting.

_For sale: Honeyside Manor_

_Includes: Porch, kitchen, bedroom, garden, Alchemy lab and Enchanting lab._

_Price: 8,000 septims._

_Talk to Jarl Laila Law-Giver in Mistveil Keep._

Without another thought in her mind, Karianna snatched up the parchment and headed over to Mistveil. All of those amenities for only 8,000 septims? It was practically a steal! Plus, she was tired of having to hole up in the Guild or in various inns around Skyrim. It was time the Dragonborn had a place she could call home. She had just walked past the guards when she heard her name called. She turned to see a group of burly men walking in her direction. Guards? No, they were too armored. Bounty hunters? Possibly, judging by their weapons.

"Look, fellas, there's been a misunderstanding," Karianna said with a sweet smile as she tucked the parchment away. "I know there's a _slight _bounty, even though I don't know what it's for. How about I pay you the bounty and we-."

She broke off when the men surrounded her and drew their weapons.

_'Shit,' _she thought to herself. _'If I fight back, the guards will arrest me. I'm not spending a night in jail just because a bunch of thugs decided to pick a fight.'_

"You're coming with us, girlie," the obvious leader of the troupe growled.

"You sure I can't give you some gold and we call it even?" she asked hopefully.

Two of the men stepped forward and grabbed her by the arms. She struggled at first but their grips were too tight.

"Fine if that's how it's going to be…," she muttered.

Looking around, she saw people watching. Some had even popped out of their windows to watch the Dragonborn and Guildmaster being hauled away by a group of thugs. That's when she got an idea. Rarely did she use her Thu'um, even in a full out battle she tried to rely mostly on whatever weapon she had in her hands rather than the power of the Voice. This time, though, she decided to make an exception.

She carefully aimed for an empty window to her left and took in air needed for the Shout. "_ZUL! MEY! GUT!_"

The Shout appeared as a ball of energy which flew through the air and burst when it hit the windowsill.

"Hey Skeever butt!" called the unknown voice that always appeared when she utilized the Shout.

The men immediately turned towards the source of the voice and Karianna used this distraction to summon another Shout.

"_FIEM! ZII! GRON!_" she shouted.

Suddenly her vision hazed and turned blue and all feeling was lost. She began running as fast as her feet would carry her in this form amidst the startled cries of the townsfolk and bounty hunters. She rounded the corner and ducked out of sight but was disappointed to see them running straight for her. She sprinted behind the houses and found herself in the cemetery, directly ahead of her was the mausoleum which housed the secret entrance to the Thieves Guild. With a glace back, she ducked into the mausoleum and pressed the button to open the entrance and pulled the chain as soon as she was inside to close it.

"Stupid brutes," she panted as she leaned against the grimy walls.

That's when she heard the grinding sound of stone on stone and saw the dying, golden sunlight appear through the ceiling as the entrance was being opened. Standing on the other side were the same men and they seemed angrier than ever. With a curse, she kicked the hatch open and jumped down, not bothering to use the ladder. She heard the voices of the Guild members cry out in surprise but ignored them as she ran for the weapon rack where her Elven Warhammer was hanging.

When she turned, it was a full out battle between bounty hunters and thieves. Niruin was unleashing a volley of arrows and managed to wound a couple of the thugs which allowed Vex to take them out with a well-placed dagger. Karianna rushed forward and brought her hammer down onto the shoulder of one of the men who had grabbed her and reveled in the sickening crack the bone made as it snapped. The effect was immediate and caused the man to drop his sword and double over in agony which allowed her to slam him in the side of the head. She turned and watched Brynjolf take out the last of the bounty hunters.

"What was _that _about?" he demanded as he stormed over.

"They tried to arrest me in the marketplace. They weren't guards, and when I offered to pay off whatever bounty they were after, they grabbed me," she explained. "Soooooooo… I ran."

"And you led them back _here to our secret hideout?!" _Vex shouted.

"They're dead aren't they? There's no way for them to reveal the location," Karianna said defensively.

"Besides, Vex, this place isn't exactly _hidden," _Rune pointed out. "Simply avoided by the general populace."

"Well… I'm just glad you're okay," Brynjolf told Karianna. "Now help us clean up this mess."

"I love you, too, sweetheart," she muttered sarcastically.


End file.
